Forums:

butterflies in our garden! (with updates)

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 3 weeks ago

4
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

Euptoieta claudia - Variegated Fritillary

last year I watched one develop a chrysalis https://permies.com/t/285614/Euptoieta-claudia-Variegated-Fritillary-caterpillar

IMG_20260825_135413_605-2.jpg

IMG_20260825_135406_808-2.jpg

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 2 weeks ago

6
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

IMG_20260826_142034_809-2.jpg

IMG_20260826_142107_622-2.jpg

IMG_20260826_142020_075-2.jpg

IMG_20260826_141916_560-2.jpg

IMG_20260826_141904_328-2.jpg

IMG_20260826_141901_900-2.jpg

IMG_20260826_141837_787-2.jpg

IMG_20260826_141840_463-2.jpg

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 2 weeks ago

5
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

some clearer photos of a pipevine swallowtail....the blue green barely shows in the sunlight.

a 'painted lady' or ?
I could not get a picture of wing spread.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanessa_cardui

IMG_20260830_125803_957-2.jpg

IMG_20260830_125648_128-2.jpg

IMG_20260830_125718_626-2.jpg

IMG_20260830_125723_257-2.jpg

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 2 weeks ago

7
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

Yesterday afternoon for a half hour or so that we noticed....not sure where they ended up but courtship was all around the tithonia.
The male hovering closely as the female sipped nectar.....he was somewhat smaller even though that's not apparent in my photos.

I got several videos but have not used my youtube account in so long I need to dig out a password.
They were quite entertaining for as long as we could take the heat😊

IMG_20260829_142656_641-2.jpg

IMG_20260829_142705_280-2.jpg

IMG_20260829_142711_411-2.jpg

IMG_20260829_141406_491-3.jpg

IMG_20260829_141412_511-2.jpg

IMG_20260829_141431_114-2.jpg

IMG_20260829_141448_557-2.jpg

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 2 weeks ago

3
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

please let me know if I've misidentified any butterflies in this thread😊

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 1 week ago

6
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

finally caught a painted lady with open wings.

fewer butterflies and more bumblebees on the tithonia yesterday and today.

IMG_20260905_124250_318-2.jpg

IMG_20260902_085749_275-3.jpg

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Jen Fulkerson

gardener

Posts: 2104

Location: N. California

1103

I like...

posted 1 week ago

8
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

I'm so glad this post resurfaced, thank you very much for sharing your beautiful garden and the abundance of butterflies. I'm a little envious. I have lots of life in my gardens, but almost never see butterflies lots of cabbage moths that I used to enjoy until I realized what they are. Maybe because I live between a walnut orchard and a almond orchard. Unfortunately they drive by in their hazmat suit and spray ?
I enjoyed your photos and videos thanks.

“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.” — Abraham Lincoln

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 1 week ago

5
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

thank you Jen!
The tithonia (mexican sunflower), is the big attraction here and then coming in second for attracting pollinators and butterflies is my bright lights cosmos, oranges and yellows and big tall plants....both flower for a long time, even better if I dead head and they don't mind the heat. This year I am watering some of them.

I have a lot of the cosmos seed and could send you some?
The tithonia seed I'm having to share with the goldfinches and my share is quite small🫤

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 1 week ago

5
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

Pipevines daily and then a few others randomly...the giant swallowtail was back yesterday but today it's the black swallowtail...and some bumblebees.
The butterflies don't seem to chase away the bumblebees but they do not share flowers and the bees are the first to leave.

pipevines are so fluttery it's hard to get a clear photo and their wings seem to wear out fast!

I've corrected what I had labeled as female black swallowtail to male.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papilio_polyxenes

IMG_20260907_141521_553-2.jpg

IMG_20260907_141522_570-2.jpg

IMG_20260907_141453_766-2.jpg

IMG_20260907_134013_421-2.jpg

IMG_20260907_134041_679-2.jpg

IMG_20260907_134045_819-2.jpg

IMG_20260906_082625_672-2.jpg

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 6 days ago

5
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

an afternoon with fritillaries here...last year we saw a gulf fritillary also, none so far this summer.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_spangled_fritillary
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euptoieta_claudia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_fritillary

IMG_20260909_141728_265-2.jpg

IMG_20260909_141703_602-3.jpg

IMG_20260909_141709_266-2.jpg

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Jen Fulkerson

gardener

Posts: 2104

Location: N. California

1103

I like...

posted 3 days ago

6
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

Thanks so much Judith. Sorry it's taken me so long to reply. It's been a very long week.
We could trade seeds. I'm lousy at saving seeds, each year I say I'm saving seeds, but rarely manage it. I just added pictures of the flowers I have saved seeds for this year in the native and other post titled more flowers. I would be happy to send you some. The cosmos I grew this year are mostly hybrid, so the seeds will not be like the original.
I had a moth, or butterfly in my garden the other day, and I tried to take a picture of it. It made me appreciate this post even more! I have no idea how you were able to capture so many beautiful butterflies. I knew it wasn't easy, but I didn't realize it was almost impossible, for me anyway.
I have tried twice to grow the Mexican Sunflower ( I'm blanking on the actual name, sorry) One time indoors, and once direct sow. I was not successful. Next year I'm definitely going to try harder.
Thanks again for all the amazing pictures. I enjoyed the YouTube videos too.

“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.” — Abraham Lincoln

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 3 days ago

5
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

Jen, your flowers are inspirational!
If you save calendula seed and nasturtium seed a few would be great but not necessary.
Those two flowers are ones I love and keep trying and never have much success.
When I send the cosmos seed I can add a bit ot tithonia and anything else you might like from my list ~~a few posts back.~~in my other thread...link to that post
https://permies.com/t/160/273988/Judith-garden-plans-records-results#3843321

Just PM an address.

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

Joao Winckler

master pollinator

Posts: 439

Location: UK

160

I like...

posted 2 days ago

7
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

The host plant connection always catches me off guard. Found out I had pipevine swallowtails in my garden and had no idea there was aristolochia growing near the fence line until I went looking for what was bringing them in.

Leaftide - garden planner w/ 876 plant types. Need permaculture testers for fruit trees & perennials. Free Pro month for detailed feedback, even just suggesting plants

Judith Browning

Posts: 10753

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3959

posted 2 days ago

4
Number of slices to send:

Optional 'thank-you' note:

Send

Joao, that threw me for the longest time also when first trying to ID what were certainly pipevine butterflies here. I knew it grew on the Buffalo River near here and now assume it grows on the creek very near our home. Have not explored enough to find it amongst the ivys, bittersweets and other viney plants.

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

I will suppress my every urge. But not this shameless plug:

Permaculture Voices 1, 2 and 3 - all 117 hours of video!

https://permies.com/t/voices123